A disk-operated electronic gaming device for playing a simulated game of blackjack is disclosed. The device includes operating controls for a player to control his play of the game; a display panel to show the progress of the game and its result; disk-handling equipment for receiving metallic disks and...http://www.google.com/patents/US3796433?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US3796433 - Electronic gaming device simulating the game of blackjack

A disk-operated electronic gaming device for playing a simulated game of blackjack is disclosed. The device includes operating controls for a player to control his play of the game; a display panel to show the progress of the game and its result; disk-handling equipment for receiving metallic disks and returning an appropriate number of disks to the player based on the results of the play; a solid state, fixed logic, digital computer to automatically determine the play of the game and to compute the results of this play; and a power supply to provide power necessary for operation of the computer, the display panel and the disk-handling equipment. The apparatus is housed in a compact, attractive, utilitarian cabinet.

Frale'y et a1. 1 45 Mar, 12, I974 [5 ELECTRONIC GAMING DEVICE 1,178,302 1 1970 Great Brilaini. 273/138 A M L I G THE E OF BLACKJACK 1,082,557 9/1968 Great Britain 273/138 A [75] Inventors g; f' i ig f fiffggi wgb I Primary ExaminerAnton O. Oechsle Nev 'f A Be A Assistant Examiner--Arnold -W. Kramer i Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Dean Sandford [73] Asslgneez gimp-Search, Inc., Buena Park, ABSTRACT V i I A disk-operated electronic gaming device for playing [22] Flled' 1971 a simulated game of blackjack is disclosed. The device [21] Appl. No.: 152,533 includes operating controls for a player to control his play of the game; a display panel to show the progress 1 of the game and its result disk-handling equipment for CCll I receiving metallic disks andretuming an appropriate [58 Fn .ld "273/138 A number of disks to the player based on the results of Ie o earc .T the play; a Solid State, fixed logic digital p g to References Cited automatically determine the play of the game' and to compute the results of this play; and a power supply to UNITEDSTATES PATENTS provide power necessary for operation of the com- 3,533,629 10/1970 Raven 273/138 A puter; the display panel and the disk-handling equip- 3,653,026 3/1972 Hurley 273/138 A X ment The apparatus is housed in a compact attract- FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS We, utllltrian cabmet- 1,082,557 9/1967 Great Britain]. 273/138 A 14 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures 1,107,552 3/1968 Great Britain 273/138 A 70\ A xii- LR I 1 3-919 J i 1 m2 3$9vvvev9vv 7 8 910 J I l 22ooo'o9 a-2129 911111 i a i 1 a a 111.1 I 11' mimic? +4-!4-++4-|24- 2 a a a 72-- 2111]] [MINER SK We: a 4 s I 7 l 0710:9111 JG? 'V'V'VVVIV 9' aratosraossoo PUSH a '2 4/2 8 4 5 0 1 Q Q 9 mummwa g a 8 9 J x l IALII TllBAI-L lll'lll'l'li i fi a 4- e 4- a 4- &l-s a a -------.;.t

Blackjack, also sometimes known as twenty-one, is a card game in which one or more players play separately against dealer which can be a house dealer, i.e., a dealer employed by a gaming house to run the game. A standard deck of 52 cards is used. The cards have no player to play against the machine. These games may rank, but have numerical value as follows: any ace counts one or 1 l at the option of the holder, any face card or counts 10, and any other card counts its 'index number. The object of the game is for each player to acquire cards whose numerical values total 21 oras close to 21 as possible without exceedi riggl dealer, has the right to draw additional cards one at a time..lf.a players first two cards count exactly 21, that is they'are a face card or 10 and an ace, he has a natural or blackjack and wins the amount of his bet immediately, unless the dealer also has a blackjack. The dealer may not look at his face-down or hole card until his turn to play unless his face-up card is an ace, face card or 10.

If the dealer does not have a blackjack, and when all bets on blackjacks' have been settled, each player in turn, beginning with the player on the dealers left,may request additional cards, i.e., be hit by saying to the dealer hit me, whereupon the dealer gives him one card face up. There is no limit to the number of cards a player may so draw, except that he may not draw a card after his count equals or passes 21. The player may continue to receive cards, one at a time, ufiil he chooses .to stand, which means that he has a count of 21 or less and does not desire any more cards; or until he busts, which means that he has a count or more than 21. In the latter case, he pays the amount of his bet to the dealer immediately. The players play in this manner, one at a time, until all playersjfini sh play.

When all other players have finished play, dealer turns up hisface-down card. A dealer must stand if his count is 17 or more, and he must hit himselfif and so long as his count is 16 or less. When the dealers hand totals 17 or more, or if he has busted, he then settles the f hqdsa s ta ssss 2.l. .hs.iaayitb.

amount of any bet not previously settled. If the dealer stands at a total of 21 or less, he settles with each player who has stood by paying any higher count and collecting from any lower count. The dealer is at -a standoff with a player having the same count, which is called a .push. The handling of pushes or ties varies. In some games pushes are collected by the dealer, and in some cases pushes are considered stand-offs. Onev popular mode of play is for blackjacks by the dealer and any one or more players to be considered a standoff, and for the dealer to take all other pushes.

In another variation of the game sometimes played, after a player has received his first two cards, but prior to receiving any additional cards, the player is allowed be purely games of chance, such as typified by the socalled slot machines, or they may simulate some well known gameof chance or skill such as those played with cards. The card game of blackjack has long been a favorite with gamesters, but efforts to produce a mechanical device to simulate this game have not been successful because of the mechanicalc'omplexity of the device and the inordinate size of such machines. Thus, a demand. exists for a reliable, compact, device which simulates playof the card game known as blackjack or twenty-one.

Accordingly, a principal object of the invention is to provide apparatus by means of which a person may play a simulated game of blackjack.

Another object of the invention :is to provide a device by means of which a player can utilizehis skill and luck against a simulated dealer in playinga game of blackjack.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a player-controlled device by means of which a person can play a simulated game of blackjack against the device acting as the dealer.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a device by means of which a person can utilize his skill and luck in playing a game against a simulated dealer substantially in accordance with the rules of the card game known as blackjackor twenty-one.

A further object of the invention is to provide a compact, reliable, player-controlled, self-contained device by means of which a person may play a of blackjack.

An even further object of the invention is to provide a machinethat simulates for a player play-action similar to that in the card game known as blackjack.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the apparatus showing the interior arrangement; i

Briefly, the gaming device of this invention is a electronic apparatus including control means for a player puter to automatically determine the play of the game simulated game 1 I and to compute the results of this play; and a power supply to provide power necessary for operation of the computer, the display panel and the disk-handling equipment. The apparatus is housed in a compact, attractive, utilitarian cabinet.

Referring now to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the apparatus is comprised of a box-like cabinet or housing adapted for placement upon a table or other supporting'structure, not shown, that maintains the device at a convenient playing height, Cabinet 10 has a door or front panel 12 pivotly secured thereto by hinge 14. Door 12 can be'locked in a closed position by means of latch-16 and lock 18. Cabinet 10 and door 12 provide a closed dust and moisture proof container for the operating components of the device and prevent tampering by unauthorized persons. Cabinet 10 can be provided with a vertical interior partition 20 that divides the cabinet into separate compartments for housing the electronic components and the disk-handling equipment. The computer and electronic control circuitry is of the solid state, printed circuit type mounted on a number of plugboards 22, seven such plugboards being employed in the illustrated embodiment.

The disk-handling equipment is a coin receiver of conventional design and is located within cabinet 10. This equipment includes a standard coin acceptor having acoin return button 32, a coin storage tube 34 to provide a reservoir of disks available for pay-offs,

coin overflow tube 36 and coin return tube 38. The disk-handling equipment can be adapted to handle metallic disks of any size A metallic disk of proper denomination is inserted into the slot in coin acceptor 30 and is tested for thickness, diameter, weight and metallurgy. If the diskis found unacceptable, or if the device is not in a proper mode of play to accept disks, the disk is rejected through coin return tube 38 and coin return chute 40 into coin return tray 42 on the front of door 12. The discharge end of coin return chute 40 mates with the aperture 44 through which the disks pass into coin return tray 42. A 'coin lockout unit in coin acceptor 30, not shown, is activated at various modes of play to prevent acceptance of a disk during that mode. However, if the device is in the'proper mode to accept a disk and if a proper disk is inserted, coin acceptor 30 discharges the disk into chute 46 which passes over the top of coin storage tube 34 and is in communication with the coin storage tube. Disks passing downwardly through chute 46 enter coin storage tube 34 until it is full, then slide across the top of the filled tube and into coin overflow tube 36, from which the disks are discharged into a suitable receptacle, not shown, or into the bottom of cabinet 10. The disk-handling equipment is supported within cabinet 10 by a suitable bracket 48.

Disks are discharged from the bottom of coin storage tube 34 by means of solenoid operated payoff unit 50 that on command passes the disks one by one into coin return chute 40, through which they are discharged into coin return tray 42.

Door 12 is constructed with an upper recessed vertical display panel upon which the progress and results of the game are displayed, an inclined control panel 62 located immediately below display panel 60, and a lower front panel 64 below which coin-return tray 42 is located. The display and control panels can be conveniently enclosed by the top and side members of the door which provide some privacy for the player and tend to isolate the display and control panelsfrom adjacent machines.

The progress of the game and its result is depicted on display panel 60. The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4 include dealer card display upon which the dealers cards are indicated, and' player card display 72 upon which the players cards are indicated in a manner which will be hereinafter more fully described; a gameover indicator 74a and winner-paid indicator 74b; a disks-played indicator 76 including separate indicators 78a, 78b, 78c and 78d that indicate the number of disks played, and separate indicators 80a, 80b, 80c and 80d that indicate the number of disks played in doubling the bet; a dealer display section 82 that includes a dealers numerical total display 84, dealer blackjack indicator 86 and dealer bust indicator 88; a player display section v 90 that includes a players numerical total display 92,

player blackjack indicator 94 and player bust indicator 96; push indicator 98 and legend 100 explaining the basis upon which pushes are paid. 7

Dealer card display 70 and player card display 72 are each comprised of fifty-two separate indicators which each represent one specific card of a standard'card deck. In the play of this simulated game of blackjack, the dealer and the player each play with a separate simulated card deck containing 52 cards. In the dealer card display layout illustrated, a row of 13 separate inmt rs .1 n m zsrsd taw s 0 aQtK.

and A represent the heart suit; a row of 13 separate inand A i'epre sent the spade suit; a row of thirteen separate indicators 106 numbered Zthr ugltlO, inclusive,

elusive], O K and A represent the club suit; Four similar rows of 13 separate indicators 110, 112, 114 and 116 in player card display 72 represent cards of each suit in the simulated players deck.

Each of the card indicators in dealer card display 70 and player card display 72, and the special condition indicators are each separately illuminated by lamps placed behind the indicators to vividly indicate the play of a particular card or the existence of a particular condition. These lamps and the attendant electrical circuitry are located in an enclosed box 66 in the upper section of door 12. While FIG. 4 illustrates one preferred arrangement, it is to be recognized that this arrangement may be modified and that other display panel layouts can be employed without materially altering the game described herein.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, control panel 62 includes deal pushbutton 120, hit pushbutton 122, double pushbutton 124 and stand pushbutton 126 and printed instructions describing the manner in which the game is played. The pushbuttons are separately illuminated to indicate to the player which of the buttons he may select at various stages of the game to direct his play. Deal pushbutton 120 is illuminated by lamp 130, not shown, hit push-button 122 is illuminated by lamp 132, not shown, double pushbutton 124 is illuminated by lamp 134, not shown, and stand pushbutton 126 is illuminated by lamp 136, not shown. These lamps and the attendant wiring are contained in box 68 mounted on the back of control panel 62.

FIGS. 5a and 5b are block diagrams illustrating the logic flow of the computer and control systems. Prior to the start of play the card display from the previous game and the special condition lamps resulting from theprevious play are lit, and the solenoid in the coin lockout unit is energized to permit coin acceptor 30 to accept disks. The first disk depositedextinguishes the card display and special condition lamps, and energizes master reset 202 to reset all memory units and clear the arithmetic and accumulator units. Also, indicator 78a in disks-played indicator 76 is energized to display the numeral 1" and deal lamp 130 is energized to light deal pushbutton 120. Deposit of additional disks in coin acceptor 30 successively energizes disks played indicators-78b, 78c and 78d to display the numerals 2, 3 and 4, respectively, to indicate the number of disks played. Deal pushbutton 120 can be enabled at any point after deposit of the first disk. Deposit of the fourth disk or enabling deal pushbutton 120 deenergizes the solenoid in the coin lock-out unit to prevent additional disks from being accepted. If additional disks are deposited,,they are returned to the player. While the illustrated device is capable of accepting from one to four metallic disks, by simple alteration the apparatus can be modified to accept more than four disks, or to accept coins of various denominations, or to accept coins of .other than United States currency.

Each card is stored in dealer card memory 218 in the order of selection. At the count of eight a dealer/player card select flip-flop in card selector 210 changes state and eight cards are selected randomly from the player deck and stored in player card memory 216. At the count of 16, random generator 208, card selector 210 and card counter 212 are disabled and master counter 214 is enabled. Cards are dealt from the dealer and player memories one at a time. When the card is dealt, the corresponding lamp in dealer card display 70 or player card display 72 is lit'and the card value is added to dealer accumulator 236 or player accumulator 226,

respectively. This takes place for two cards for the player, both of which are displayed, and two cards for the dealer, of which only the first is displayed. The second card dealt to the dealer is held in dealer card memory 218 as the hole" card.

After the dealer and player have been dealt two cards each, both dealer accumulator 236 and player accumulator 226 are checked by dealer blackjack detector 238 paid indicator 74b is lit. If 2] is sensed in both dealer and player accumulators, push indicator 98, dealer blackjack indicator 86 and player black-jack indicator 94 are lit, master counter 214 is reset and disabled, game over indicator74a is lit and a payoff equal to the amount of the initial bet is set and the computer goes into the payoff cycle, at the conclusion of which winner paid indicator 74b is lit. If no 21 is sensed, hit pushbutton 122, double pushbutton l24 and stand pushbutton 126 are enabled and lamps 132, 134 and. 136 are lit to indicate that these pushbuttons are enabled.

If double pushbutton 124 is depressed, double lamp 134 will remai lit and hit lamp 132 and stand lamp 136 will be extinguished. The coin lock-out unit in coin acceptor 30 is energized to permit additional disks to be accepted. The device will not start play until an amount of disks equal to the initial bet is deposited.- As the coins are deposited, l Double.indicator 80a, 2 Double indicator 80b, "3 Double indicator 80c and 4 Double" indicator 80d in coins played indicator 76 are successively lit until the necessary number of disks are deposited. When the initial bet is matched, one card is dealt from player card memory 216. The card is displayed on layer card display 72 and its numerical value is added to player accumulator 226 and the total point count displayed on player numerical total display 92. After scoring and displaying the card, the computer will automatically switch to the player stand condition. The dealer second card is displayed on dealer card display 70 and added to dealer numerical total display 84. The player accumulator is checked for a bust condition by player bust detector 230. If a bust is sensed, player bust indicator 96 and game over indicator 74a are lit. If no bust issensed, cards are automatically dealt to the dealer until a point total of 17 or greater is sensed by the computer. Dealer accumulator 236 is 'checked for a bust condition. If a bust is sensed, dealer bust indicator 88 is lit, a payoff of, two times: the doubled best is set, the computer goes 'into the payoff cycle, and 'winher paid indicator 74b is lit. If no bust exists, dealer accumulator 236 is checked for a push condition by player-dealer comparator 244. If a push is sensed, push in dicator 98 is lit,- master counter 214 is reset and disabled, and game over indicator 74a is lit. If no push is i counter 214 is reset and disabled, and game over indicator 74a is lit. lf the player score is greater than the dealer score, a' payoff of two times the doubled bet is set, the computer goes into the payoff cycle, and winner paid indicator 74b is lit.

If, after the initial deal, instead of depressing double pushbutton 124 and doubling his bet, the player elects to depress hit pushbutton 122, hit lamp 132, double lamp l34and stand lamp 136 are extinguished to indicatethat hit pushbutton 122, double pushbutton 124 and stand pushbutton 126 are disabled. One card-is 'accmulator 226, displayed on player card display 72 and the total score indicated on player numerical total display 92. Player accumulator 226 is checked for a bust condition by player bust detector 230. If a bust is sensed, player bust indicator 96 and game over indicator 74a are lit, and master counter 214 is reset and disabled. If a bust condition is not sensed, hit pushbutton 122 and standpushbutton 126 are enabled, and the corresponding lamps are lit to indicate the enabled pushbuttons. The player may continue to play the hit pushbutton until a bust condition is sensed or the player elects to stand by depressing stand pushbutton 126.

. If stand pushbutton 126 is depressed, hit pushbutton 122, double pushbutton 124 and stand pushbutton 126 are disabled and corresponding lamps 132, 134 and 136 are extinguished and the dealer hole card is dis played on dealer card display 70 and its numerical total added to dealer numerical total display 84. Cards are automatically dcalt'one at a time from dealer card memory 218 and displayed on dealer card display 70, and their point valueadded to dealer accumulator 236 and displayed on dealer numerical total display 84 until a total of 17 or greater is sensed in the dealer accumulator. When the total reaches 17 or more, dealer accumulator 236 is checked for a bust condition by dealer bust detector 240. If a bust is sensed, dealer bust indicator 8-8 is lit,.a payoff of two times the bet is set, the computer goes into the payoff cycle, and at the conclusion of the payoff winner paid indicator 74b is lit. If no bust exists, dealer accumulator 236 is checked for a push by player-dealer comparator 244. If a push is sensed, push indicator 98 is lit, master counter 214 is reset and disabled, and game over indicator. 74a is lit. If no push is sensed, player accumulator 226 and dealer accumulator 236 are compared by player-dealer comparator 244 and the winner determined. If the dealer score is greater than the player score, master counter 21 4 is reset and disabled, and game over indicator 74a is lit. 1f the player score is greater than the dealer score, a payoff of two times the bet is set, and the computer goes into the payoff cycle. At the end of'payoff cycle, winner paid indicator 74b is lit and the device is left with the cards'showing on the card display panels and Since an ace counts a point value of either 1 or 11, a special handling mode for aces is provided. The first ace that is dealt to the player or dealer is assigned 9 point value of l l. The remaining aces that may be dealt in the same hand have a point count of 1. When the first ace is dealt, it is also stored in an ace memory section of dealer and player ace present logicunit 250 for use in case the player ordealer point value is over 2 1 and the ace needs to have a point value of 1 rather than 11. 1f the player or dealer should have an ace with a count value of 11 and the next card dealt puts the player or dealer count value over 21, ace present unit 250 will automatically subtract from the count value, thereby attributing a point value of 1 to the ace and preventing a bust condition.

Random card-generator 208 simultaneously generates a series of separate suit and card values identifying eight cards and stores these cards in dealer card memory 218. After eight cards are selected, the output is switched to player card memory 216 and a second series of suit and card values are generated identifying an the appropriate special condition indicators remain lit.

additional eight cards which are stored in the player card memory. At the count of 16, the random card generator is disabled. The dealer and player cards are selected independently. Each hand can contain any of the 52 cards, but a card once selected cannot be selected again in that hand during any one game. However, the same card can be selected in both the dealer and player hands.

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates random generator 208', which is comprised of low purity oscillator 260 having a frequency of 1 megahertz i 20 percent, low purity oscillator 262 having a frequency of 500 kilohertzi 20 percent, and low purity oscillator 264 having a frequency of 170 hertz i 20 percent. By low purity it is meant that the output frequency of each oscillator will independently drift during successive short samplirig periods. The outputs of oscillators 260 and 262 are connected through gates 266 and 268, respectively, to counters 272 and 274. Counter 272 counts to 13 and repeats, with each count representing a card value. Counter 274 counts .to 4 and repeats with each count representing a suit. The output of oscillator 264 is passed through three stage counter 276 which reduces the frequency to approximately 21 hertz. The most significant bit output signal from counter 276 enables gates 266 and 268 andallows the oscillator outputs to pass to counters 272 and 274 for half of each cycle. Duringeach enabled period approximately 22,000 i 4,400 pulses are passed to counter272 and 11,000 i 2,200 pulses are passed to counter 274. Counters 272 and 274 continuously count these input pulses during the enabled period. During alternate half cycles the output of gate 278 causes the counter to be read and the suit and card value transferred to the respective dealer or player card memory. Thus, each signal output from gate 278 will cause one signal representing a suit and one signal representing a card value to be transferred to the dealer or player card memory. Card selection is enabled by latch flip-flop 280 which is activated by a deal signal generated by depressing deal pushbut ton 1 20 and is disabled at the count of 16 cards trang ferred to memory.

Randomness in card selection is obtained by variability of the time in the count cycle at which deal button 120 is depressed; by the variations in the frequencies of the outputs of oscillators 260, 262 and 264; by the fact -that the outputs of the high frequency lcocks are sampled at a low frequency, i.e., frequencies of nominally 1 megahertz and 500 kilohertz are sampled at a frequency of about 21 hertz; and by the fact that a large number of pulses are counted by a repeating count to 4 or count to 13 counter.

The power required for operation of the device is 5 volt d.c. for the computer components, approximately 6 volt a.c. for the disk-in and disk-out counters, and approximately 6 volt d.c. for the indicator lights, and volt a.c. for the payoff solenoid. A conventional power supply unit capable of converting a 1 15 volt a.c. supply to a relatively constant 5 volt d.c., 6.3 volt a.c. and 6.3 volt d.c. output is illustrated in FIG. 7. The 1 15 volt a.c. power supply is connected across the primary coil of constant voltage transformer 300, which is provided with capacitive reactance compensation, Full wave rectifier 302 is connected across the secondary winding of the transformer, and the ground is connected to'the center tap of this winding. The rectified current is filtered by capacitive input filter 304. Bleeder resistor 306 provides 'a small d.c. current flow to stabilize the unit under no-load conditions. Transformer 308 reduces the l 15 volt a.c. supply to a 6.3 volt a.c. output, and diode 310 provides the unfiltered 6.3 volt d.c. output.

The timing sequences for the various play actions are summarized as follows: WHEN THE FIRST DISK IS DEPOSITED: A. Master reset'is generated and all registers, accumulato rs and displays from the previous game are reset.- B. Deal pushbutton 120 is enabled. 7 WHEN DEAL PUSHBUTTON IS DEPRESSED: A. Card selector 210 and random generator 208 are enabled. B. Eight cards are selected randomly from the dealer deck and stored in dealer card memory 218. C. At the count of eight, flip-flop in card selector 210 changes state and eight cards are selected randomly from the player deck and stored in player card memory D. At the count'of 16, card selector 210and random generator 208 are disabled and master counter 214 is enabled. I

E. Master counter 214 generates the following timing during the deal'cycle:

T1 .Preset player and dealer adder-subtractors 232 and 242.

Fill player and dealer registers 224 and 234.

T2 .Sample for player or dealer ace.

T3 .Enable load 11 in player and dealer registers 224 and 234.

T4-T9 .Add player and dealer registers to zero and store in player and dealer accumulators 226 and 236.

T9-T1l .Update dealer card decoder 222.

T10 .Display player and dealer first card. Update player and dealer accumulator display.

T11 .Preset dealer and player adder-subtractors 232 and 242.

Shift next cards out of player and dealer memories 216 and 218. j

T12 .Store dealer second card.

T13 .F ill player and dealer registers'224 and 234.

T14 .Sample for dealer and player ace.

T15 .Enable load 11 in player and dealer registers 224 and 234.

T16-T21 .Add player and dealer registers to accumulators 226 and 236 and store in accumulators.

T21 .Display player second card. Update player accumulator display 92.

a. If push exists, light push indicator 98, and game over indicator 74a.

b. If player total is greater than dealer total, go into payoff cycle and light winner paid indicator 74b.

T8 .lf dealer total is greater than player total, light game over indicator 74a and disable master counter 214.

To play a simulated game of blackjack with the device of this invention, a player deposits one to four disks in coin acceptor 30. Upon acceptance of the first disk, all card and special condition indicators from the previous game are reset and deal pushbutton is illuminated. Hit pushbutton 122, double pushbutton 124 and stand pushbutton 126 are disabled at this time.

To start play, the player depresses deal pushbutton 120 which initiates the random selection of eight cards from the dealer deck and eight cards from the player deck. These cards are stored respectively in dealer card memory 218 and player card memory 216. Upon com pletion of the card selection and storage in the memory units, the master timing and arithmetic units are enabled and the card selector disabled. The master timer deals two cards each from the player and dealer memories. Both of the players'cards are displayed on player card display section 72 and their total numerical value is displayed in player numerical total display 92. One of the dealers two cards is not displayed, but is stored in a memory unit to check for a blackjack. I

Upon dealing these four cards, a search for a total of 21 is made. If 21 is sensed in the player accumulator, but not in the dealer accumulator, player blackjack indicator 94 is lit and the device goes into a payoff cycle. If 21 is sensed in the dealer accumulator, but not in the player accumulator, the dealers second kard is displayed and dealer blackjack indicator. 86 and game over indicator 74a and lit and the device is ready for 'the'next game. If both the dealer and player have 21,

push indicator 98, player blackjack indicator 94, and dealer blackjack indicator 86 are lit and a payoff equal to the amount of the bet is made and winner paid indicator 74b lit. I

If neither the player nor the dealer has a blackjack, hit pushbutton 122, double pushbutton 124 and stand pushbutton 126 are enabled and illuminated to indicate to the player that he has a choice of these selections.

If double pushbutton 124 is depressed, double lamp 134 remains lit, and the hit and stand buttons are disabled. The player must now deposit disks equal in num bet to those deposited in the initial bet. When the initial bet is matched, one card is automatically dealt from the player memory and displayed, the dealers hole card is displayed, and the players total point count is checked for a bust. If the player busts, player bust indicator 96 and game over indicator 74a are lit. The device is now ready for the next game.

If the player does not bust, the dealers total point count is checked for the numerical value of the two cards 1 f the value is 17 or greater, the computer compares the dealer and player numerical values. If the dealer total is greater than the player total, game over indicator 74a is lit and the device is ready for the next game. If the player total is greater than the dealer total point count, a payoff of twice the bet is returned. If the dea l e r t9tal is 16 or less, the computer will automaticaTly deal another card from the dealer card memory. The dealer's total point count is checked for a bust. If a bust is detected, the computer goes into the payoff cycle. If the dealer has 17 or greater th e dgaler total 5561113 player total are compared and the was??? termined. lfthe dealer still has a point count of l6or less, the dealer hit cycle is repeated until'the dealer busts or has a point count of 17 or greater A If instead of selecting the double pushbutton, the

' player, elects to depress hit pushbutton 122, a card is dealt from the player memory and displayed. The players total point count ischecked for a bust. If a bust is detected, player bust indicator 96 and game over indicator 740 are lit. If no bust is detected, the hit button is enabled again allowing the player a choice of hit or stand. The player may play the hit pushbutton as many times as he wants until he busts or decides to stand. When the player desires no more cards, i.e., he elects to stand, he depresses stand pushbutton 126. The dealers hole card is displayed and the computer goes through the dealer hit and dealer stand cycles and the winner determined. 7

Thus, from a players standpoint, a simulated game of black-jack is played with the device of this invention by inserting the desired number of disks into coin acceptor 30 and depressing the deal pushbutton. When the dealers card and players cards and numerical point count are displayed, the player need only decide whether to double his bet and receive one additional card, or to be hit with as many cards as he may desire, or to stand. These plays are controlled by the players selection of the double, hit and stand pushbuttons.

While various embodiments of the invention have been described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications, which are considered within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the attached claims.

Having now described the invention, we claim:

1. A gaming device for playing a'simulated game of blackjack by a player against a simulated dealer, which comprises:

a solid state, fixed logic, digital computer to automatically determine the play of the game including (1) means to randomly generate card and suit values representing simulatedcards, said means including means to simultaneously generate first and second low purity,high frequency signals, means to generate a'low purity, low frequency clock signal, first player control means electrically connected to said computer for a player to initiate the play of the game, to direct the dealing of an additional card to the player, and to terminate: the dealing of addi tional cards to the player;

a display panel electrically connected to said computer to show the progress of the game and the result;

disk-handling. equipment electrically connected to said computer for receiving metallic disks deposited by the player and returning an appropriate number of disks to the player in the case of a player win; and a power supply to provide the power necessary for operation of the device.

2. The device defined in claim 1 wherein said computer includes a dealer card memory and a player card memory and also includes means to store a first series of said randomly generated card'values representing dealers cards in said dealer card memory and to store a second series of randomly generated card values representing players cards in said player card memory, said dealers cards being dealt from said dealer card memory and said players cards being dealt from said player card memory.

3. The device defined in claim 2 wherein said computer also includes means to display both of the players cards dealt to the player and only one of the dealers cards dealt to the dealer, means to ascertain if the player or dealer has a point count totaling 21 means to determine if after the dealing of an additional card to the player and player point count exceeds 21, means to determine the dealer point count and wherein said means to simulate the dealing of additional cards to the dealer automatically simulates the dealing of additional cards to the dealer so long as the dealers point count is less than 17, means to determine if the dealer point count exceeds 21, means to end the game in the case of a dealer win or a push, and means to end the game and to return an appropriate number of disks in the case of a player win.

4. The device defined in claim 1 wherein said display panel includes a dealer card display section for displaycounter means to repetitively count said first signals to a count of l3'during half of each cycle of said low frequency clock signal to determine a random value from I to 13 representative of a card value, second counter means to repetitively count said second signals to a count of 4 during each of said half cycles to determine a random value from I to 4 representative of a suit value, and means to read said first and second counters during each alternate half cycle of said clock signal, each combination of card and suit values representing a different simulated card, (2) means to simulate the dealing of two of said simulated cards to the player and two of said simulated cards to the dealer, (3) means responsive to a players control means to permit the player to initiate the play of the game and to selectively control the dealing of additional cards to the player, (4) means to simulate the dealing of additional cards to the dealer until a prescribed total card valve count is equalled or exceeded, and means to determine the winner as be tween the player and the dealer;

ing the simulated cards dealt to the dealer and a player card display section for displaying the simulated cards dealt to the player.

5. The device defined in claim 4 wherein said display panel also includes a disks-played indicator, a dealer numerical total display, a dealer blackjack indicator, a dealer bust indicator, a player numerical total display, a player blackjack indicator, a player bust indicator, a push indicator and a game over-winner paid indicator electrically connected to said computer to indicate respectively the occurrence of the various play modes.

6. The device defined in claim 1 wherein said control means includes a deal pushbutton to initiate play of the game, a hit pushbutton to initiate the dealing of an additional card to the player on each operation of the pushbutton, and a stand pushbutton to terminate the dealing of additional cards to the player and to initiate the dealing of said additional cards to the dealer.

7. The device defined in claim 6 wherein said control means includes a double pushbutton operative only after the initial deal and wherein said computer includes means to permit a player to double the number of disks initially received by said disk handling equipment and to then receive only one additional card.

8. The device defined in claim 1 wherein said power 9. An electronic gaming device for playing a simulated game of blackjack by a player against a simulated dealer, which comprises:

an enclosed cabinet for housing the operating components of the device; solid state, fixed logic digital computer including (1) meansto randomly select simulatedgardsfi); the player and for a simulated dealer including first and second low purity, high frequency oscillators, means for generating a low purity, low frequency clock signal, a repeating count to 13 counter, a repeating count to 4 counter, means to conduct the output of said first oscillator to said count to 13 counter and the output of said second oscillator to said count to 4 counter during half of each cycle of said clock signal with each count of said count to 13 counter determining a different respective card valueand each count of said count to 4 counter determining a different respective card suit, means to read said count to 13 and said count to 4 counters during each alternate half cycle of said clock signal, and means to enable said counters upon the receipt of a deal signal and to disable'said counters upon the production of sixteen card and suit values representing eight dealers cards and eight players cards, (2) means to simulate the deal of two of said randomly selected players cards to the player and two of said randomly selected dealers cards to the dealer and to display both of the players cards and only one of the dealers cards, (3) means tgggcgr;

tain if the player or dealer has a point count totaling 21, (4) means responsive to a players control means to permit the player to initiate play of the game and to selectively control the dealing of additional cards to the player, (5) means to determine if the player total point count exceeds 21, means to automatically simulate the deal of cards to the dealer so long as the dealer point count is less than 17, (7) means to determine if the dealer total point count exceeds 21, (8 'means to deter- 'mine the winner as between the player and the dealer, and (9) means to end the game in the case of a dealer win or push, or to end the game and return two times the number'of disks received by disk handling equipment in the case of a player win; display panel electrically connected to said computer to show the progress of the game and its result; player control means electrically connected to said computer for the player to initiate the start of play, to initiate the dealing of one or more additional cards to the player and to terminate the dealing of additional cards to the player; disk-handling equipment electrically connected to said computer for receiving metallic disks deposited by the player and returning an appropriate number of disks to the player in the case ofa player win, said equipment including a disk acceptor having a solenoid actuated disk lockout to permit acceptance of disksonly during prescribed modes and disk payout means to return a prescribed number of disks to the player on command; and

a power supply to provide a source of constant voltage 5 volt d.c., 6 volt ac, and 6 volt dc. power to operate the components of said device.

10. The device defined in claim 9 wherein said display panel includes dealer and player card display sections for displaying the simulated cards respectively dealt to the dealer and the player, a disks-played indicator, a dealer numerical total display, a dealer blackjack indicator, a dealer bust indicator, a player numerical total display, a player blackjack indicator, a player bust indicator, a push indicator and a game overwinner paid indicator electrically connected to said computer to indicate respectively the occurrence of the various play modes.

11. The device defined in claim 9 wherein said player control means includes a control panel having a deal pushbutton to initiate play of the game, a hit pushbutton to initiate the dealing of an additional card to the player on each operation of the pushbutton, and a stand pushbutton to terminate the dealing of additional cards to the player.

12. The device defined in claim 11 wherein said control panel also includes a double pushbutton operative only after the initial deal and wherein said computer includes means to permit a player to double the number of disks initially received by said disk handling equipment and to then receive only one additional card.

13. An electronic gaming device for playinga simulated game of blackjack by a player against a simulated dealer, which comprises;

an enclosed cabinet for housing the operating components of the device;

a solid state, fixed logic, digital computer including J (2 means to randomly select simulated cards for the player and for the simulated dealer including first and second low purity, high frequency oscillators, means for generating a low purity, low frequency clock signal, a repeating count to 13 counter, a repeating count to 4 counter, means to conduct the output of said firstfiillator to said count to 13 counter and the output of said second oscillator to said count to 4 c9u nt er during half 9f each cycle of said clock signal with each count of said count to 13 counter determining a different respective card value and each count of said count to l counter determining a different respective card suit, means to read said count to 13 and said count to 4 counters during each alternate half cycle of said clock signal, each combination of card and suit values representing a different simulated card, and means to enable said counters upon the receipt of a deal signal and to disable said counters upon the production of 16 card and suit values representing eight dealers cards and eight players cards,

(2) means to simulate the deal of two of saidrandomly selected players cards to the player and two of said randomly selected dealers cards to the dealer and to display both of the players cards and only one of the dealers cards, (3) means to ascer- 15E if the pla yer or dealer has a point count Eial i r g 2 l, (4 means responsive to a players control means to permit thiiy'r to initiate play of the game and to selectively control the dealing of additional cards to the player, (5) means to determine if the player total point count exceeds 21, (6) dream fe'aatomaucan simulate the dealofc ards dealer, and (9) means to end the game in case of a dealer win or push, or to end the game and return two times the number of disks deposited in the case of a player win;

' disk-handling equipment electrically connected to said computer for receiving metallic disks and returning an appropriate number of disks to the player in the case of a player win, and equipment including a disk acceptor having a solenoid actuated disk lockout to permit acceptance of disks only during prescribed modes, a disk storage tube, a disk return tube, a solenoid operated disk payout unit, and a disk return tray;

display panel located at the front of said cabinet and electricaly connected to said computer, said display panel including dealer and player card display sections for displaying simulated cards respectively dealt to the dealer and the player, disks played indicator, dealer numerical total display, dealer blackjack indicator, dealer bust indicator player numerical total display, player blackjack indicator, player bust indicator, a push indicator and a game over-winner paid indicator to indicate respectively the occurrence of the various modes;

a control panel located at the front of said cabinet and electrically connected to said computer, said control'panel including adealpushbutton to initiate play of the game, a double pushbutton to permit the player to double the number of disks deposited and to receive one more card, a hit pushbutton to initiate the dealing of an additional card to the player on each operation of the pushbutton, and a stand pushbutton to terminate, the dealing of addi' tional cards to the player; and

a power supply to provide a source of constant 5 volt d.c., 6 voltac. and 6 volt dc. power to provide the power necessary for operation of the device.

14. The device defined in claim 13 wherein said first oscillator develops an output signal having a frequency of about I megahertz i 20 percent, said second oscillator develops an output signal having a frequency of about 500 kilohertz i 20 percent; and said means for generating a low frequency clock signal includes an oscillator-having an output frequency of about 170 hertz i 20 percent and a three'stage counter to reduce said output-to a frequency of about 2]. hertz.